Support structures are used in a wide variety of environments today for the purpose of storing items for a selected duration of time. Some of these support structures, such as wooden pallets used in industrial environments, are adapted to store stacked items in an elevated state above the ground for access at a later time by a vehicle. Other structures are more durable in construction and provide support for heavier items. These include, among other types, steel frames used predominately in the shipping industry.
Regardless of the type of support structure utilized, it is often desirous to load and off-load items onto a vehicle for transportation to a desired location or to load and off-load equipment that is used while being transported such as, for example, equipment for road deicing, sanding or salting. For most loads, however, manual labor is too inadequate and potentially dangerous and the assistance of a vehicle, such as a forklift or a crane, is required. Even these vehicles, though, are of little practical use for many applications.
The public works departments of many cities are frequently called upon to maintain access routes in a safe condition for use by the general public. For instance, when winter weather conditions become severe, the public works department is responsible for depositing salt or sand on the roads to alleviate any unnecessary risk of harm to commuters. At other times it may be necessary to deposit other compounds on the roads. Irrespective of the particular application, a truck or other comparable vehicle is required to transport these compounds which compounds are typically stored in large cargo containers. Because these containers can be quite heavy and need to be accessed in a short amount of time in order to satisfy everyday demands, it is desirous to efficiently load and off-load the containers onto the bed of a vehicle, and various solutions have been developed in an attempt to accomplish this objective.
One such solution has been to suspend the containers in an elevated state above the ground so that a vehicle operator can position the vehicle's bed under the container for loading purposes. Typically, the containers are suspended by a number of chains which interconnect them to an overhead support frame. Several containers may be suspended next to each other in this fashion. A problem with this approach, however, is that the structure is somewhat precarious in design and can become unstable or unsturdy from continued use, resulting in potential damage to either the containers themselves or anyone in the near vicinity of the support structure.
Another type of support structure which has found extensive use in the area is a generally rectangular steel frame which has a plurality of support legs (usually four) and which is adapted to securely support a container in an elevated condition. Two of the support legs are pivotally connected to a first end of the support frame, while the remaining two rear legs are connected to a second end of the support frame and retractable relative thereto.
Both the steel frame and the container may be loaded onto a hydraulically actuated bed of a vehicle by slightly elevating the bed and backing up the vehicle until the bed Is positioned underneath a portion of the support surface proximate the pivotal legs. At this point, a user pivots the pivotable legs into a stowed, horizontal condition proximate to the support frame. Then, once the support structure and the container are properly positioned on the vehicle's bed, retractable legs may be adjusted into a retracted state. The entire device is now loaded onto the truck bed and transportable to the desired location. While these prior art support structures have prove quite useful, a problem with their construction is that improper positioning of the truck bed may cause the support legs to pivot prematurely which can result in collapse of the entire structure.
Accordingly, numerous needs exist to overcome the deficiencies inherent in prior art support structures. One such need is to provide a support structure that is better equipped to supporting heavy cargo in an elevated state yet that is adapted to facilitate the loading and off-loading of the cargo onto the bed of a carrier vehicle. Another need is to provide a support structure which is more durable in construction. It is from these considerations and others that the present invention has evolved.